


Small Tokens

by LindyA1985



Series: 12 Short Stories 2020 [14]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Confusion, Courting Rituals, Gifts, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-07
Updated: 2020-10-07
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:08:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,793
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26876431
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LindyA1985/pseuds/LindyA1985
Summary: Harry wonders who sends him little gifts each Monday morning at breakfast and what the silly things mean.
Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter
Series: 12 Short Stories 2020 [14]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1676857
Comments: 8
Kudos: 119





	Small Tokens

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the August 2020 prompt of the 12 Short Stories challenge.

Harry looks at the piece of fabric that has fallen from the envelope. It’s just a piece of fabric. Harry looks into the envelope again. There is nothing else in there. No explanation or even a note of who it’s from.

“What you’ve got there?” Hermione asks from across the table.

“No clue, just a piece of fabric,” Harry answers.

Hermione picks up the fabric and turns it around in her hand. “It’s the same material as our robes,” she says. “Why would someone send you a small piece of robe fabric?”

“No clue.” Harry lifts his shoulders and takes the fabric from Hermione. It’s softer than the fabric of Harry’s robes, still new and shiny. Harry puts the fabric in his pocket and returns his focus to his breakfast. He’ll throw it away later, just like he’s done with all the other little tokens he’s received all summer for saving the world.

Only the piece of fabric never makes it to the bin. Harry leaves it in his pocket for days. He likes to touch it during class when his mind drifts back to the war, or when he wakes up in the middle of the night from another nightmare about that horrible night he lost his life. He doesn’t tell anyone, just keeps it to himself. Harry suspects that Hermione knows, but she doesn’t say a word and Harry is fine with that. It’s just a stupid piece of fabric, nothing special.

Days later, Harry gets another anonymous package. He opens it and finds a small book about snakes inside. Harry shivers as he remembers the snake in his dream last night. To large and old to be natural, slowly swallowing Harry’s body after Voldemort had killed him, making it impossible for Harry to return to the living. Sometimes Harry things he’s still dead, that all this is a dream. But then he wakes up screaming in his bed and he knows he’s still alive.

Harry means to get rid of the book, but he places it on his bedside table at the end of the day and leaves it there. He never reads it, or even opens it, but for an unknown reason, he can’t move himself to throw it away.

“Can I borrow your book?” Neville asks on Saturday. “I’ve seen a small snake in the greenhouse and I just want to make sure it won’t hurt the plants.”

“Sure, go ahead,” Harry tells him without looking up from his homework.

“Where did you get this? I’ve read about this book, it’s the best when it comes to snake knowledge, but it’s rare and hard to get by.”

Harry looks at Neville and lifts his shoulders. “It was a gift,” he says.

“Cool gift,” Neville says. He turns another page and continues to find his mysterious snake.

Harry doesn’t think of the gift as something cool, or awesome as Dean described it. He hates the little book and all it stands for. Nothing good comes from learning about snakes.

On Monday a new package gets delivered during breakfast. Harry looks for a clue about the sender, but there isn’t anything except the Hippogriff feather. Ginny giggles beside him and Hermione just lifts her eyebrows.

“I don’t get it,” Harry says. “Why would someone send me a Hippogriff feather?”

“I think it’s wonderful,” Luna answers. She takes the feather and tickles Ginny with it. Harry just shakes his head and continues his breakfast. Luna gives him back the feather and then takes off with her hand linked with Ginny’s.

“You still jealous?” Hermione asks.

Harry shakes his head. He’s never been jealous. It was clear that both he and Ginny wanted something different. Maybe that has been what had made them gravitate towards each other in the first place. Harry doesn’t know, he only knows that a girl is not what he is looking for. Without thinking he looks at the Slytherin table and spots the blond hair that has featured his more pleasant dreams of late. Not that it matters, Malfoy’s engagement arrangements were made public last weekend. He will marry the young Greengrass girl as soon as they both finish school this year.

A newspaper follows, and then a fake Auror badge, a book about healing charms (the first thing that is actually useful) and finally a feather of a snowy owl. Harry looks at the feather with tears in his eyes. He misses Hedwig. His first friend and trusted pet ripped away too soon like so many others.

“This isn’t funny,” Harry says to no-one in particular.

“I don’t think it’s supposed to be funny,” Hermione says. “It looks more like an apology or something.”

“What do you mean?” Harry asks.

Hermione gets up from the table and tells Harry to follow her. It isn’t until they reach the library that she says what she means.

“Well, it started with the robe fabric. Do you remember telling us about the first time you’ve gotten your robes?” she asks.

“Yeah, it’s when I met Malfoy for the first time, all up and mighty. He reminded me of Dudley. What has that got to do with anything?”

Hermione shakes her head. “It’s what followed. The book about snakes. Remember duelling club second year? And then third year, all that stuff with Buckbeak.”

It makes sense when Hermione says it like that. The newspaper is about fourth year and Malfoy lying to the press to make Harry look back. The badge for the inquisition squad. All things Harry rather forgets.

“The git thinks he’s funny, remembering me off all the awful encounters I had with him,” Harry says. He walks out of the library and back towards the great hall. When he gets there he walks straight to Malfoy who is still sipping his tea. His eyes widen when Harry stops right in front of him.

“Keep you silly gift to yourself. I don’t need them and I don’t want them,” Harry shouts.

Malfoy his hand shakes and he puts his teacup down. “You don’t want them,” he stammers.

“No, why would you even send me them? Do you think I enjoy remembering all the awful stuff that happened to me in the last seven years?”

“I’m sorry, I will stop,” Malfoy says. He looks down at his empty plate. “I just thought, but I’m sorry, it won’t happen again.”

“Thank you,” Harry says and then he leaves. Back in his dorm, he places the snowy owl’s feather in the box with the other little gifts. His hand dips into his pocket and he strokes the soft piece of fabric that he carries around everywhere. Fuck Malfoy and his stupid gifts.

It’s crazy, but Harry is disappointed when he doesn’t get a gift during breakfast the next Monday. He knows he asked Malfoy to stop, and that he should be happy, but somehow it just doesn’t sit right. Harry looks over to the Slytherin table, only to discover that Malfoy isn’t there. Zabini and Parkinson sit alone, apparently in a heated discussion by the looks of it. Parkinson looks up and stares straight at Harry. Harry looks away and pretends to listen to Luna who is excited about the upcoming Care for Magical Creatures class.

“You’re an idiot,” Zabini says a moment later. He stands in front of Harry, with Parkinson just behind him.

“Leave it, Blaise. Draco is going to kill you,” Parkinson says.

“He won’t, not if I’m right,” Zabini counters without taking his eyes off Harry.

“Your funeral,” Parkinson says and then she turns to leave.

Zabini shakes his head, his eyes haven’t left Harry who is still staring up at him from his spot on the bench.

“Why did you excepted all the tokens if you didn’t want them?” Zabini asks.

“Tokens?” Harry asks.

“The gifts, the small little tokens Draco has been sending you. Fuck, you really don’t know, do you?” Zabini shakes his head again. “Didn’t any of your house-mates explain to you what was going on?”

“What the fuck are you on about?” Harry asks.

“Courting, Potter, that’s what I’m on about,” Zabini snaps.

“Courting?” Harry echoes.

Ginny laughs next to him and Luna squeezes in delight. “Isn’t it wonderful,” she says.

“You knew he was courting me?” Harry asks her.

“Of course. It’s custom to send little reminders of important moments that link each other together when showing interest in a suitable partner,” Luna explains.

Harry shakes his head. “But Malfoy is engaged,” he stammers.

Zabini sits down next to Ginny and signs. “You are a fool if you think Draco had anything to do with that engagement. His parents arranged it all, in the hope he will come to his senses.”

“So the rumours are true then?” Ginny asks. “Malfoy is a poof?”

“Yes, Weasley, he is. Always has been and always will be. And if it’s up to him, he will only marry one person in his life, but that idiot has told him that he doesn’t want him. So now he’s been sulking for a week, ignoring his schoolwork and being a massive pain.”

Harry’s head spins. All the crazy gifts were tokens and Draco wants to marry him. His hand slides into his pocket and holds onto the little piece of fabric hidden inside. It comforts Harry as it has done for the last two months. He hardly listens to Ginny and Zabini’s conversation. He needs to tell Malfoy that he accepts, that he wants to see where this goes.

“What is the Slytherin password,” Harry asks.

“Boomerang,” Zabini answers without protest. “Down the stairs, second door on the left. Don’t knock, he won’t let you in if he knows it’s you.”

Harry runs out of the Great Hall and down the stairs, He stops in front of the Slytherin common room and says the password. Some younger students look surprised to see Harry step inside but nobody says a word.

“The stairs?” Harry asks the room. A young girl points to the left and Harry moves quickly. He only stops when he’s in front of the second door on the left. Is he really doing this? Malfoy is still a git, one that has done horrible things to Harry’s friends. Ron won’t understand, for him, Malfoy will always be that boy that called his girl a Mudblood. But Harry has seen his pain during sixth year, his strength during the war to do what right with a risk to his own life, the dedication to being a better person since the start of this school year. And Harry wants him, more than anything. It’s stupid and crazy, but it’s the trued. So Harry opens the door and steps inside, ready to accept the love offered to him. 


End file.
